The Foundry at Trojan Horse was a Unicorn Festival
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Just like the mythological tale, the Trojan Horse was a Unicorn Festival seems to have come out of nowhere, but will certainly be an event everyone hopes to see sticking around.
This young, fresh festival is quite literally bursting with talent from the visual effects, design, game and 3D industries. So much so, we challenge you to leave without feeling overwhelmingly inspired. Trust us, that is an impossible task. Here's a run-down of this years event, so you know what delights to expect in 2015.
I just kept drawing, some kids give up. I was always drawing. - Mathias Verhasselt
First of all, lets talk about the talent. Guest of honor and the most anticipated attendee to the festival this year was Syd Mead. For anyone who is unsure of who he is, Syd is a futuristic concept artist whose innovative designs have pushed boundaries across a variety of industries. His best known designs are in a few films you may have heard of including Blade Runner, Aliens and Tron. Enough said.
Some people may argue that having a talent like that is almost all you need, especially after you've attended Syd's talks (standing ovations all round). However, the THU crew like a challenge and secured a killer line up that packed out each day from 11am through til the early hours of the morning.
The festival's ambassador, Scott Ross (ILM, Digital Domain) headed up the plethora of experts which consisted of Hugo Guerra, Kyle Mcculloch, Ian McQue, Andrew Schmidt, Loic Zimmerman, Gavriil Klimov, Mathias Verhasselt, Jan Fiedler, In-ah Roediger, Catherine Mullan, Alessandro Baldasseroni, our own Martin Mayer and so many more.
Im an artist, not a 3D printer. - Furio Tedeschi
More than just presentations
Inspirational talks weren't all that was on offer either. Mentorships with the speakers played a huge part in the festival. All over the small and beautiful Tr ia, pockets of people were grouped together fuelling creativity and gaining expert advice Make your demo 2 mins. NO LONGER, seriously. Kyle Mcculloch. Off the cuff Q&A sessions were encouraged with the festival creators urging you to simply go up to your favorite artists at any point. A truly refreshing approach.
Alongside the mentorships, artists got back to basics with life drawing classes and workshops. The gorgeous and quirky suicide girls rocked the life drawing classes, whilst speakers including Creative Specialist Martin Mayer and Hugo Guerra, VFX Supervisor & Lead NUKE Artist at The Mill ran you through the software and skills they use professionally on a daily basis.
At Pixar, story is king. - Andrew Schmidt
Each evening there were intense Wacom battles where the speakers teamed up to quickly create unique artwork and preserve their reputations under some friendly pressure. Non Wacom competitors had a chance to chat and have drinks with all of the speakers and attendees into the night, whilst cheering on the teams.
The vibe at THU is relaxed and cool. If you've ever wanted to just chill out with the faces behind your favorite films, games and commercials, this is the place. Imagine hanging out with your best friends, all of whom are insanely talented.
If I hadnt done the Barbie movies, I would have never done Gravity. - Kyle Mcculloch
See you there next year Should you keep THU on your radar? Absolutely. What makes this different from the other events around at the moment is the raw honesty and approachability of everyone in attendance. You won't get anyone promising you a career in the VFX industry if you follow steps 1, 2 and 3 or if you learn software a, b or c. However, you do get an open and honest array of journeys that show how demanding, yet rewarding the industry can be.
Our main hope for the future of this event is a live stream or recordings of speakers. It seems almost cruel not to be able to share the knowledge currently whizzing around our heads, so fingers crossed that's something we may see. In the meantime, we'll be re-watching Blade Runner and Tron if you need us.
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The Foundry at Trojan Horse was a Unicorn Festival
